This application is based on Japanese Patent Application No. 10-268134 filed on Sep. 22, 1998, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to image forming apparatuses such as copying machines and printers, an image forming system for printing an image data outputted by a computer, and a computer-readable record medium stored with an image forming program for computers, printers or copying machines.
2. Description of the Related Art
Some of the image forming apparatuses represented by printers and copying machines are equipped with a large capacity storage device such as a hard disk device. The storage device is used for temporarily storing an image data before they are printed on paper.
Those image forming apparatuses are normally equipped with a tray for collecting papers after printing. It happens in some cases that the number of pages required for printing all the data stored in the storage device exceeds the capacity of such a tray. In such a case, the printing action of the image forming apparatus may stop short of printing the entire stored image data, or worse, may cause a paper jam condition in the mechanism used for discharging the printed paper.
It is a general object of the invention is to make it possible to print an entire image data even if the number of sheets necessary for printing the entire image data exceeds the capacity of the tray.
Another object of the invention is to provide an image forming apparatus including a receiving unit for receiving a printing job that includes image data, a counting unit for counting a number of sheets required by the printing job when an image for one page is formed on a sheet of paper, an image forming unit for forming images for a plurality of pages on a sheet of paper when the number of sheets exceeds a prescribed value, and a tray for receiving an image formed sheet.
Another object of the invention is to provide an image forming system including a printer for printing an image data, and a computer for preparing the image data. The computer includes a counting means for counting a number of sheets required by prepared image data when an image for one page is formed on a sheet of paper, an image preparing means for newly preparing image data for forming images for a plurality of pages on a sheet of paper when the number of sheets exceeds a prescribed value, a job preparing means for preparing a printing job containing the newly prepared image data, and a transmitting means for transmitting the printing job to the printer.
Another object of the invention is to provide a record medium stored in a computer-readable manner a program to be executed by the computer for printing an image data on a paper. The program includes the steps of (A) acquiring a number of sheets required by prepared image data when an image for one page is formed on one sheet of paper, (B) newly preparing image data for forming images for a plurality of pages on a sheet of paper when the number of sheets exceeds the prescribed value, (C) preparing a printing job including the newly prepared image data, and (D) transmitting the printing job to a printer.
Another object of the invention is to provide an image forming method includes the steps of (A) receiving a printing job including image data, (B) acquiring a number of sheets required for a printing job when an image for one page is formed on a sheet of paper, (C) forming images for a plurality of pages on a sheet of paper when the number of sheets exceeds the prescribed value, and (D) discharging an image formed sheet to a tray.